Process for the production of halogens from hydrohalides



M. THoMA 2,987,378

PROCESS FOR TRE PRODUCTION OF HALOGENs FROM HYOROHALIDES June 6, 1961 Filed Oct. 15, 1958 Kirn". i

United States Patent" 2,987,378 Y PRoCESS :lmn'l'HEfY PRoDUCTIoNoF -HALOGENS Y FROMHYDROHA-Lmus- MatthiasTln'pmm401A Johanne-Strauss-Strasse,

Waldktaibura Germany Claims priority, appli'ation Germany oct. 17, 1957 1- (Cl. 234219)' AThe ipresent inventionE relafesft" a` new and improved: process for thefprprtion' of halogens' ina highlyv purified forni f froiiiui':A sor'fsperidingY hydrohaiide.

Anl impotah't'obiectif: this"i11'vention' is the provision of an eicient andelononiical' processfor the production of'halog'ens da hig'h`order ot'V purity', and'in which the'correspodin'g hydrolalideisfemployed as' the source of the halogei which"is"produced.

Other objectsA of this invention will appear' from' the following detailed description.

The processes hitherto known` for the production of halogens fromY their hydrohalides involved" either' the oxidation of thehy'drohalide with nitric acid' or with a mixture of nitric' acid' and'sulfuric acidAk or a'modication of the"Deafcon" process in which* hydrogenb chloride is catalyticallyVA oxidized'. In` general, the processeshitherto employedY utilized a hydrohalide in the vapor state. Also, the halogen obtained was produced in a relatively dilute forni;` In producingA chlorine,A for example, the chlorine contained impurities `suchr asv hydrochloric acid, as well as oxygno air, so that the' use of some method for the puriicatin: of the' halogen was required.

In addition,v the conversionl of the` aqueous mixture of `;l:`ilo'rine and hydrogen chloride ,in tthe particular oxidation process mentioned' above has been found to amountonly to about 70% in view of the equilibrium conditions which exist; Also the hydrogenV chloride which dissolves inA the" aqueous reaction medium formed is separated in the foi-m of an aqueous ,hydrochloric acid solution and 'in this form cannot be further utilized in the reaction for conversion" to chlorine.4 Y Y It has now been yfound that hydrochldric `acid any available concentration can .be oxidized Vto form tchlorine efficiently andfecononricallyand to yield fchlorine of a purity of 98% to 100%.V Thishighorder of purity is obtained without any further purication. ln the =novel process of the ,present invention itis inimaterialwlether oxygen, air or other I suitable oxidizing agent is cui: ployed. In addition, by fthe 4present procs a 100% conversion' ofzhydrogen chlorideto chlorine can be ohtained regardless of. whethejgaseous hydrogenchloride or aqueous `hydrochloric acid is employed. However, lin

the instant fusionprocessnthe equipment employed should be constructcdentirely otumaterialsresi'stant' to' th 'corrosive action of copper-,salts since the use of anyo'thr material will produce only small 'yields' ,of the desired immuni-th ha-1086?; j The novel pf vthis invention coirip'rises` Va stage reaction in which cupric chlodeis h'eatedin'- the first stagetojatempei'ature of 400 C. Ato 650 C 'o -etect 'the thermal df-,the cuc chloride tocuprous chloride and free c'hl'orire',V ild the cuprous chloride formed` is their 'xidi'zed vwith ','ga'se'dus 'oxygen in the presence of hydro 11v chlo de so as to" nv'ert it again to cpric chloride wi'thwater beijrigfrmed `as vra by-pi'dtict Jfitlle` cfin, vThe Afecitil proceeds Vlin accordance with the followiii' 2,981,378 Patented `lune 6, 1961 ICC 2LY purity of 98%--100%.` The cuprous chloride is then dissolved? in an aqueous cupricV chloride .solution containing hydrochloric acid-where it isconverted back to cupric chloride by oxidizing it with an oxidizing agent, suchv as air oroxygenl'whil'e at a temperature of S0C.100' C.

By employing an aqueous solution of` cupric chloride which is saturated 'at 20 'C. in admixture with the hydrochl'oric acid which takespart in the oxidation reaction, rapid andcomplete solution of the substantially water-insoluble cupric chloride takes place where the temperature of'th'e aqueous solution israised. Since, as indicated by the literature, cupric chloride lhas a solubility: at about 20 C. of 23% and of about 48% at 80 C. to 100 C. itis, therefore, possibleto eiect theV oxidationofverysubstantial quantities of cuprous; chloride in'each volume ofthe-cupricchloride solution due to the increased'solubility of the cupric chloride at the highertemperature.'

vIn order to` separate the cupric chloride in solution without' the excessive expenditure or application ofenergy'and without the necessity for the removal-of water byfvapon'zation or evaporation, or` the like, and to make the cupfric` chloride' availablev for. thefusion and heating step, the solution obtained after the oxidation step is completed; which comprises an equeous solution containing" Iboth cuprous chloride and cupric chloride, is cooled to a temperature off 20 C. toV 30 C. whereby substantially: all of the cupric chloride present, and which has"y been forme'dby the oxidation of; the cuprouschloride, crystallizes' from' solution. Thecrystal slurry thus formed isf separated from? thelmother liquorsibymeans of a suit.- able suction lter or lilter press or by using a centrifuge, the separation producing saturated aqueous solution of cupric chloride and a crystalline mass of cupric chloride cortainingfromi about 3% t`o5%A moisture. The cupric chloride crystals also have two mols of water ofcrystallization bound' thereto.

The saturated aqueous solution of cupric chloride thus obtained is mixed with hydrochloric acid and is thus prepared as further solvent in which the cuprous` chloride for the oxidation step is to be dissolved, and the cupric chloride crystals are dried and then cycled to the fusion step of the process.

accordance with the novel process of thisinvention, chlorine of `a high degree of purity is obtained quite readily While at the same time the novel process of this invention enables the desired oxidation to be effected with any' convenient gaseous oxidizing agent, employing temperatures of from 20 C. to 100 C. It has also been observed that in the instant process the oxidation of the hydrochloric acid added is almost 100% complete. It

`is also of `considerable economic importance that the desired conversion is eected with the application of only .that amount of .heat energy which is required to raise the temperature of thecupric chloride in the fusion step to altemperature of 400- C.to 600 C. and to ybring it to a molten condition. Therheat energymay, however, be recovered Valmost entirely `since it may be employed for -the evaporation of water where the process involves the usef lrelatiyely dilute hydrochloric acid solutions.

.The advantages of theinstant process are many and `the more important are that chlorine is obtained di- -rectly in a highly purified form without the necessity for any subsequent purification treatment, the oxidation process .is useful and effective employing either hydrogen chloride or aqueous hydrochloric acid Yofl any4 available 'iconcentratiom and, furthermore, that any available oxi- -rftlizing agent isi suitable, the most advantageous .being either oxygen or air.

ln order to illust-rate invention but without being limited thereto, the following examples are given:

Example l 500 parts by weight of dry cupric chloride are heated'- to a temperature of 600 C. to 650 C. and during the period the melt Yis heated to this temperature the decomposition of the molten cupric chloride yields 100 parts by weight of pure chlorine. The heating of the fused mass converts it to a mixture of 280 parts by weight of cuprous chloride and 120 parts by weight of unreacted cupric chloride. The molten mass is either employed in the molten state or is rst cooled and then reduced in particle size and added to a solution of 150 parts by weight of cupricy chloride and 150 parts by Weight .of hydrogen chloride in 700 parts by Weight of water. At a temperature of 90 C. to 105 C. all of the cupric chloride and cuprous chloride inthe molten mass produced by theV fusion step is dissolved. AirV or oxygen is then introduced into the resulting solution until all of the cuprous chloride present has been oxidized to cupric chloride. The solution is then cooled to a temperature of C. to 25 C. The cupric chloridewhich precipitates from the .solution is filtered off and then dried on a suction lter. The cupric chloride thus recovered is then cycled to the fusion step, as described, Where it undergoes partial decomposition, as described, to yield the pure chlorine vapor. The mother liquors obtained after the cupric chloride crystals are re@ moved is fortified by the addition of hydrochloric acid or hydrogen chloride and the desired `concentration of acid produced and the resulting acid solution Vis then employed as the reaction medium for the next stage or oxidation cycle .of the process in which it serves asl the solvent forv the recovered cuprous chloride which is to be oxidized..

Example YII' 540 kilos of cupric chloride and 210 kilos ofpotassiurn chloride are yheated to a temperature of between 500 C. and 600 C. and this heating step produces 100 kilos Yof pure chlorine in the gaseous phase, together withabout 3.3 kilosy of copper salts which are carried along but which y are removed by passing the chlorinegas through a, vessel in which all of the solids either settleor are removed from thegas phase and leave the purified chlorinegas to be withdrawn. The molten 650 kilomass remaining is brought into solution in a mixture of 594vkilos ofhydrogen chloride and 650 kilos of armxture of cupric chloride (and potassium chloride in 2380 kilos of water. At Aa tenperatrurre of 90 C Ato `105 C. a homogeneous solu'to'is obtained and then either'air Aorv oxygen is passed through the solution ir finely divided bubbles, Vuntil all of the cuprous'chloride'presentihs been converted V'tcc'l'lpic Vchloride bythe resulting oxidation.Y Upon 'cooling' to a temperatureof'20" C. to 25 C. a crystalline cupric chloride precipitate Vforms and the crystalsare Separated from the mother liquor lby centrifugin'g.` The crystalline` mass recovered 'is a mixture of 540 kilos'of'cupric chloride and 210 'kilos' of potassium chloride. H `AfterA this crystalline mass has been dried it is thenavailable-for "the fusion cycle of the process.V The mother Vliquors are mixed-with 100 kilos ofhydrogen chlorideand Vtheresulting solution is thereby madefavailable for the oxidation cycle when the crystalline residue from the .fusion cycle has been added. In the above process, the potassiumV chlorideacts to suppress the Yvolatilization of .the Vcopper salts Yand-to reduce this volatilization to a Yminimum. Experiencehas shown that dry chlorine gas may be obtained withoutfthe use of potassium chloride and `the'volatilizedy copper salts carried along with the. gases "may be separated completely, but the use of potassium quantities must be removed.

4 Example III The process of this invention may be carriedout in a continuous manner and this continuous process is iil1sr trated by the accompanying drawing which comprises: ai flow sheet of such a continuous operation.

Referring now to the' drawing, thei fusion step is carried out in a quartz reactor tube 1 provided with an outlet' 2 and a discharge orice 2a, reactor 1 being maintained in a heater 7 which is adapted to provide and maintain a temperature in said reactor tube 1l of` from 400. C. to 650 C. Cupric chloride vfor the fusion step is introduced into reactor 1 from a storage vessel 6 which passes the cupric chloride into vessel 5 throughY a suitable valve mechanism at the base of the storagevessel 6, the valve; mechanism being timed to coincide with the rate of discharge of the molten charge from discharge orifice 2a;. The gaseous chlorine formed in react/er1 rises and is' collected in vessel 3 from which it is passed throught oriiice: 4 to a suitable device such as a cyclone separator (noti shown) in which any copper salts present in the chlorine` gas may be removed. The molten, fused mass of cuprous chloride and cupric chloride formed during the fusion is.I discharged from reactor 1 through orifice 2a into tower. 9 which is iilled with a 20% to 25% by weight aqueous, solution containing both cupric chloride and hydrogen' chloride, as heretoforedescribed. Tower 9 is connected in series to towers 10 and 11, which are also charged with the same aqueous solution, communication between the respective towers being provided by conduits 23 and e heat presentin the molten mass entering the aqueous solution in tower 9 is removed byi the resulting partial vaporization of the water in tower 9v and the steam thus formed leaves tower 9 through conduit 12 'and is condensed in coolerl 15. 'I'he condensate is then' discharged to a vessela17 through a separator 16. In order to replace the water Aremofvedfr'om tower 9 because of the vaporization of the water,v aqueous hydrochloric acid is added from an acid supply in vessel .The oxygen or air required for the oxidation ofthe V'cuprous chloride in the aqueous solution in towers 9, `10 and 11 is introduced into the system through a vessel 19, -the air or oxygen entering through a pipeZZ.` The unreacted air yorA oxygen separated from the condensate Vin separator 16` is returned to vessel 19 through a pipe 18.: The oxidizf ing gas from vessel 1 9is passed through a'conduct 20 to a pump or blower 21 and is then passed'i'nto tower 11iY vthrough line 26 Where it is `broken Vinto flnebubbles `and' passes upwardly through the aqueous'solution The un'- reacted gases leave ltower llfthroughv line 27 andare caused to owcountercurrently to the flow 'of the aqueous solution by being passed upwardly'through the'solution in tower 10, as shown, and then through` line V28 -and upwardly through the solution in tower 9.1When'the' oxidation of the cuprous chloride'isV completed in tower 11, the Ycupriechloride solution formed is discharged-through a conduit 25, vandonto a cooling-rollf3()Y Wherel'the drop in temperature causes-the 'cupric chloride in solution to `crystallize outand tov dropjoff on -totr'ough `31fin the form of a wetlcrystallinem'ass'. Thella'tte'r is -discharged Vinto a'ceutrifugalV separatrbzjthe' crystalline cupric chloride removedthen being'driedinV the dryerlblower 33 by'means of hot air from lthe 'heater 3 4 yand finally carried to the storage vessel fthrough line 29.0 The mother liquor separated in centrifuge 3 2 isreturned by a pump ss thrugh line 14 .to theoxidatiop tower '9. -rhus, the process of this invention is adap'tcdvfor continuous opera- .feature ofthe instant invention resides essentially in luse of j halogenV metal salts ,vfvhichfcan be' decomposed fusion to yield the desired halogen and a halogen metal salt of a lower valence which can then be readily oxidized to a higher degree of Valency, especially in aqueous solution and in the presence of the salt of higher valency and the corresponding hydrogen halide, and the oxidation product then readily separated yfor return to the fusion step of the cycle.

I claim:

A continuous process for the conversion of hydrogen chloride to elemental chlorine by the cyclic oxychlorination of cuprous chloride to cupric chloride followed by the heat fusion of cupric chloride having the steps which comprise: (l) heating cupric chloride to a temperature of from between 400 C. to about 650 C. to convert it to chlorine gas and a molten mixture of cupric chloride and cuprous chloride; (2) adding said molten mixture to an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride containing cupric chloride to dissolve said molten mixture and thereby obtain a solution of cuprous chloride and cupric chloride at a temperature of above about 80 C.; (3) passing an oxygen-containing gas through the aqueous solution obtained in step 2, whereby the cuprous chloride is oxidized to cupric chloride; (4) cooling and crystallizing the aqueous solution obtained in step 3 to precipitate cupric chloride therefrom; (5) separating the resulting cupric chloride crystals from its mother liquor and recycling it for use in step l; and (6) adding hydrogen chloride to the mother liquor recovered in step 5 and recycling the resultant solution for use in step 2.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,418,931 Gorin Apr. 15, 1947 2,468,766 Low May 3, 1949 2,666,024 Low et al. Jan. 12, 1954 OTHER REFERENCES Mellor: A Comprehensive Treatise on Inorganic and Theoretical Chemistry, Ivol. 3, page 158, Longmans, Green and Co. (1923). 

